On November 21, 2025, Dale J. Burke, a 31-year-old White male from La Grande, Oregon, was found dead in a large field on the northeast side of the city after having been reported missing for several weeks. Local media and memorial sites report that he had been listed as “lost to gun violence” on that date in Oregon, and a regional death notice later confirmed his death and residence in La Grande.
In the days just before his body was discovered, the La Grande Police Department publicly acknowledged that Burke had been missing for about five weeks. His family told reporters that he was last definitively seen on October 20, walking down Y Avenue toward Spruce Street in La Grande, with an unconfirmed report placing him later that same day near the Center for Human Development. Family and friends searched areas they believed he might frequent, including campsite areas on Fox Hill and around Emigrant Springs, but those efforts did not locate him. Police circulated his description and a public appeal for information while the missing-person investigation remained active.
According to a later police news release carried by local outlets, officers were in a large field in northeast La Grande just after 11:30 a.m. on November 21, following up on an unrelated case, when they came across Burke's body. Authorities stated that he appeared to have died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound and noted that he had been previously reported missing on October 27. Roughly ten minutes later, in a separate section of the same field and about 100 yards away, officers discovered another missing La Grande youth, Drake Hill, also deceased from what investigators described as an apparent self-inflicted wound.
Because two missing people were found dead in close proximity, the Major Crimes Team was activated in accordance with regional death-investigation protocols. That multi-agency team includes the La Grande Police Department, Union County Sheriff's Office, Oregon State Police, and the Union County District Attorney's Office. Investigators began documenting the scene, gathering drone footage, and reviewing nearby security camera video while a department chaplain and a victim advocate assisted with next-of-kin notifications and support for the families. At the same time, memorial and awareness sites on the internet noted Burke's death as part of a broader toll of gun-related fatalities recorded on November 21, 2025.
Publicly available statements from law enforcement and regional news coverage emphasize that, despite the closeness in time and location of the two deaths, the initial investigation indicates they are isolated incidents and are not believed to be connected to each other or to any third-party assailant. Authorities describe both deaths as apparent self-inflicted and have not suggested any evidence of homicide. As of the latest online reporting, no suspects have been identified, no arrests have been made, and there are no indications that investigators are seeking anyone in connection with Burke's death; the focus of the inquiry has been on documenting the circumstances rather than pursuing a criminal suspect.
